Cubs retooling already under way

Image Courtesy of Bing

After a disappointing loss to the Dodgers in the NLCS, the Cubs have already begun retooling.  The Cubs fired pitching coach, Chris Bosio, after his very successful six year run with the Cubs.  Bosio may be the fall guy for a disappointing performance in this season's playoffs, but other factors may have come into play.

 A contributing factor?

Tampa Bay Rays pitching coach, Jim Hickey, was also recently fired and has a long history with Joe Maddon.  Hickey is interviewing for the Cubs job Monday.  It would be a surprise if he doesn't get the job. In addition to Hickey's relationship with Maddon, he's one of the few pitching coaches who has a resume to match Bosio's.

A possible bonus prize? 

One of Bosio's most famous reclamation projects, Jake Arrieta, is a free agent who figures to sign elsewhere.  The Cubs figure to explore the free agent market to replace Arrieta.  One prominent target in this year's free agent starting pitcher market is the Rays Alex Cobb.  Cobb went 12-10 last season, with an ERA of 3.66. Cobb might not have the ceiling of Jake Arrieta at his peak, but figures to be able to replace the 2017 version of Arrieta.  If the Cubs do indeed hire Jim Hickey, Alex Cobb will probably follow.

 Help from within

During a post LA Dodgers series loss, Cubs head honcho, Theo Epstein, gave an extraordinarily candid pres conference.  In that press conference, Epstein addressed the Cubs needs.  In addition to a starting pitcher or two, the Cubs also need bullpen help and a better approach at the plate.  The hiring of Hickey and signing of free agent, Alex Cobb, would be a good start.  The Cubs have some talent in the bullpen in the form of Justin Wilson and Carl Edwards.  It's possible Hickey could help revive their command.

 On the offensive side....

Epstein also addressed the possibility of trading players at the major league level.  Ian Happ Kyle Schwarber and even Javy Baez are possibilities.  To some degree, Schwarber and Happ are a duplication of each other.  Schwarber may have a higher offensive ceiling, but Happ has more speed, versatility and slightly more defensive value.  Baez may have made himself trade bait due to his failure to make adjustments at the plate during the playoffs.  His swing from the heels approach at head high fastballs was somewhat disconcerting.

Two guys who were supposed to give the Cubs offense a more balance look after the 2015 playoffs are now basically impossible to trade.  Ben Zobrist will be 37 next season and comes off an injury filled year where he hit .232 and had an OPS of .693.  He's under contract for two more seasons.  Jason Heyward has had two sub-par years after signing an eight year, 184 million dollar contact.  That's one of the worst, if not the worst, contracts in baseball.  The Cubs haven't been hamstrung by bad contracts so far, but Heyward's contract could be a real albatross around the Cubs neck going forward. 

The Cubs front office is considered one of the best in baseball.  It will be put to the test this off season.